Wednesday, October 10, 2018

Hooded nudibranchMelibe leonina
The hooded nudibranch is the most bizarre of sea slugs. It has a large,
inflated 'oral hood.' A fringe of stiff hairs point in toward the center
of the hood, helping it to trap tiny amphipods and other small
crustaceans. The hood also closes to trap air, helping the nudibranch
drift from place to place. The bluish, almost transparent body reaches 4
inches. They are usually found on eelgrass. (Marine Life of Puget
Sound, the San Juans, and the Strait of Georgia)

Enbridge pipeline ruptures, sparks fire near Prince George
Most residents are being allowed back into their homes after a gas
pipeline ruptured north of Prince George, sparking a massive blaze. RCMP
say the explosion happened at about 5:30 p.m. Tuesday and forced about
100 members of the nearby Lheidli T’enneh First Nation from their homes.
Officials say it was from an Enbridge natural gas pipeline in Shelley,
about 15 kilometres northeast of Prince George. Police say residences
within several kilometres were evacuated as a precaution, but the
evacuation zone has now been reduced to residences within a one
kilometre radius of the explosion site. They say there are no injuries
and no reported damage other than to the pipeline itself. (Canadian
Press) See also: Puget Sound Energy customers asked to conserve gas, electricity after pipeline rupture
About two-thirds of all of the natural gas supply to the Puget Sound
region has been compromised, supply managers say. Jake Whittenberg
reports. (KING)

Minnesota judge acquits pipeline protesters from Seattle
A judge in Clearwater County has acquitted three pipeline protesters
from the Seattle area just hours into the first day of testimony. The
surprise outcome followed several developments that appeared to doom the
defense's case. Emily Johnston, Annette Klapstein and Ben Joldersma
faced felony charges stemming from the 2016 attempt to shut down two
Enbridge oil pipelines in the county. Judge Robert Tiffany found that
prosecutors failed to prove they had actually damaged the pipeline when
they used a bolt-cutter to unlock a valve and turn off the flow.
Enbridge had already shut down the line as a precaution following a
heads up from the protesters. The defense had intended to mount a
necessity defense, arguing that the action was justified in order to
prevent greater harm from climate change. Dan Kraker reports. (Minnesota
Public Radio)

Barge fire in Surrey partially extinguished
A Surrey barge fire that spewed thick, black smoke visible throughout
much of Metro Vancouver was partially extinguished as of Tuesday
evening. Asst. Fire Chief Chris Keon with Surrey Fire Services said the
Fraser River barge fire was likely to be completely snuffed out after
crews attacked the flames from a fireboat and from the shore. Keon said
the fire was first reported shortly before 5 p.m. PT at the Schnitzer
Steel facility just east of the Patullo Bridge. There were no injuries
and no one was on the barge at the time of the fire, he said. Metro
Vancouver said it was monitoring the situation for any air quality
dangers but as of 7 p.m., had issued no warnings. Liam Britten reports.
(CBC)

Whidbey residents rally against military jet noise
Nearly 500 people crowded into Central Whidbey’s historic Crockett Barn
and spilled out into the surrounding grass during a rally against
military jet noise last week. Sound Defense Alliance held three
simultaneous events in protest of the Navy’s plans to bring 36 more
EA-18G Growlers to Naval Air Station Whidbey Island and to increase the
amount of practice at the Outlying Field Coupeville by as much as 370
percent. Jessie Stensland reports. (Whidbey News Group)

U.S. conservation groups decry B.C. decision to allow logging in Skagit River system
The B.C. government, which opposes the expansion of the Trans Mountain
oil pipeline because of the potential threat to the Salish Sea’s marine
environment and its endangered killer whales, is putting those same
waters at risk by approving logging in a sensitive watershed, a
coalition of U.S. conservation organizations says. The Skagit River
system flows south from B.C. through Washington State and into Puget
Sound, including waters that are critical to chinook salmon – the
primary source of food for the southern resident killer whales.
“Washington State has spent hundreds of millions of dollars restoring
one of the largest chinook runs in the Salish Sea. Why mess with that?”
said Michelle Connor, past co-chair of the Skagit Environmental
Endowment Commission. Justine Hunter reports. (Globe and Mail)

B.C. Ferries spending spree could be good news for orcas
B.C. Ferries plans to retire 18 aging vessels over the next 12 years and
that is likely good news for the southern resident killer whales that
share the waters with the ferry fleet. The Crown corporation will spend
$2 billion on 22 new vessels, with the next round of new vessels to
begin service in 2020. New ferry construction will prioritize noise
reduction through improved propellers, quiet military design features,
wake management and engine noise dampening. A typical ferry operating at
service speed generates sound at about 185 decibels, which dissipates
slowly over long distance, according to B.C. Ferries noise mitigation
plan. Randy Shore reports. (Vancouver Sun)

Woman Calls 911 As Whales Surround Boat On Puget Sound
A Lynnwood family is sharing a whale of a tale after they had a close
encounter with a few humpback whales on out Puget Sound recently. The
whales were right under the Lucianna family's boat, and one woman on
board - very freaked out - ended up calling 911 on the giant mammals.
"I'm out in Puget Sound and there's three gray whales and I'm a afraid
we might get flipped over and I'm really scared," the woman tells the
911 dispatcher. After a few minutes of watching the whales, the family
decide to leave the scene. Neal McNamara reports. (Patch)

These freaky fish use their fins to 'walk' across the seafloor
A flatfish scuttles along the seafloor with no legs, yet it takes its
cue from the world’s leggiest animal. New video analysis reveals that
the creature’s unusual gait is strikingly similar to that of a
millipede. It’s one more weird fact about flatfish, which look like
regular fish flipped on their sides and levelled with a rolling pin. The
animals begin their lives looking like typical fish, but soon undergo a
Picasso-esque metamorphosis. Bones and cartilage in the skull twist and
shift, and one eye migrates across the head to join the other. The
changes make flatfish—a group that includes flounder, sole, and
halibut—the “most asymmetrical organisms on Earth,” says Claire Fox, a
doctoral student studying fish locomotion at Cornell University in
Ithaca, New York. These oddities are adaptations to life on the
seafloor. The animals have long, finger-like fin rays sticking out from
the edges of their flattened bodies that somewhat resemble the many legs
of a millipede. To move forward, they simply bunch up a few of their
fin rays to form a “fin-foot,” which they use as a contact point to push
against the seafloor, Fox and her colleagues report this month in the
journal Zoology. Erica Tennenhouse reports. (National Geographic)

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Salish Sea Communications provides communications and public relations services that raise visibility and engage audiences. Drawing on over 30 years experience in private, public and not-for-profit work, Mike Sato brings to you his skills and insights in developing and carrying out your print, electronic and social media projects and products. "I've been in the communications business since 1977 starting with community weekly newspapers then working for Seattle City Light, the Puget Sound Water Quality Authority, Hawaiian Electric Company and, for 20 years, People For Puget Sound." Salish Sea Communications: Truth Well Told. WA State UBI #601395482